Creating Space for a Forgotten Group of Cannabis Founders

Cannabis is one of America’s fastest-growing sectors – but it’s leaving out most Americans.

Indeed, cannabis remains a mostly white, male world. Last year, MJBizDaily found that only about 20% of cannabis businesses in the U.S. are owned by women. And in three states where robust data was available – Colorado, Michigan and Nevada – between 63% and 84% of cannabis firms were owned by white people.

In particular, Indigenous entrepreneurs are getting left behind in the industry’s uptick – MJBizDaily says they comprised between only 0.4% and 2.5% of cannabis entrepreneurs in the states studied. Worse, Indigenous founders are, at times, taken advantage of by government entities and industry gatekeepers alike.